Thilgrim
Overview Thilgrim is an evil dragon god. Legend Old dwarven runes deep underground speak of the Ordering, the time when those gods who stand as far, if not further, above the gods than the gods above mortals made the world. In their inscriptions they tell of many things, the creation of the elemental planes, the raising of the Spire, and even the birth of winter. Thilgrim was one of the Primal Dragons, some texts claim he was one of Tiamat’s Five Generals but these are but lies and mistakes. Thilgrim was linked to the primal essence of ice and snow, and the hunger of Winter. When the world was made it was given to Thilgrim to govern the lands that were solid with ice, and the months where frost ruled the ground. Thilgrim did his duty in the early world, and the lesser races were born. He discovered something, they feared him. Many mortal gods would come that had not yet, gods of winter which would prevent such a thing from happening again, but this was when even the gods were still not all born and Thilgrim was the lord of winter. Mortals made offerings to placate winter and its terrors, and Thilgrim became a demon-god in their eyes a great force preying at the edges of society. Had he been simply winter and nothing more, unthinking and uncaring, little would have come of this for people would have turned their worship elsewhere, but Thilgrim had vanity. He accepted these offerings and in return spared those villages in the northern lands that offered good gifts, and he sent the fury that he held back against these redoubled at those which had not placated him so. Bahamut brought this matter before the gods and before Io, and Io stripped Thilgrim of his status as arbiter of winter giving the position instead to whatever god would rise up in his place. Only Io, and the other overdeities, could have foreseen that it would be Thilgrim himself who would rise up as a god. The early mortals had feared him so that, even when the dragon had been struck down by the Great Forefather, they still in their primal fear worshipped the great dragon. Thilgrim did not stay dead long, or at least not all of him, and he returned as the Lord of Winter. Some dwarven myths add a final touch, though theologians state that it is no more true than those placing Thilgrim as amongst the Five. Even so it will be included here. When Bahamut discovered that Thilgrim had risen to godhood for his abuse of power he confronted Io and asked “What justice is this, that one who disregards his divine mandate for his own greed be granted ranking amongst the gods?” And Io answered Bahamut thus, “There is only what is, what must be, and what justice exists is only that of mortals.” Cleric Training Thilgrim’s clerics fall into two groups those who serve him only to satiate him for the sake of their people’s safety, and those who serve him out of their own greed. The former, despite being the priests of a chaotic evil god, are normally good or lawful, sacrificing their personal freedom for the benefit of their kith and kin (they tend to be adepts, or druids; though some are chaotic and/or evil becoming clerics and favored souls). These priests are generally pitied by their kin, forced to live apart from their tribe, and act out Thilgrim’s desires and act as a speaker for his mandates. They are trained by an elder, more experienced priest who teaches them to interpret Thilgrim’s desires and to mitigate his wrath at the lowest cost to their people. The latter sometimes come from amongst these priests, accepting the pariah position in exchange for the chance to use their place as Thilgrim’s mouthpiece to extort power and valuables from their kin. Others amongst these are trained by wanderers who actively wield Thilgrim’s powers to their benefits. This training is own of mistreated apprenticeship, with the mantle of priesthood often being pried from the master’s fingers already frozen in death. Quests: Thilgrim cares little for advancing the cosmic cause of Winter unless it is threatened, although if a people find a way through magic or other means to circumvent its threat he will send his followers to destroy these means. Thilgrim is known to send out his priests to ensure his fame spreads, and that his name is upon the tongue and thoughts of man. Prayers No prayer to Thilgrim asks for something without offering the god something in return. Just like his clerics, prayers to Thilgrim fall into two categories those praying for protection from him and those praying that he turn his destruction against the supplicant’s enemies. Regardless of which type of prayer the supplicant must also offer Thilgrim some service whether it is burning incense in his honor, a sacrifice of material wealth or food, publicly singing his praises, or building some monument in his honor. It seems that he is more likely to send destruction than to withhold it, and even those who start with noble intentions often end up only praying that he sends destruction somewhere else instead of towards them. Temples: Thilgrim’s temples are built outside of towns within artic regions. They are built from stone, with a large fire pit in the center and kept heated year round, the fires kept burning in honor of Thilgrim as a constant reminder of how much power the cold has over the lesser races. His temples range from small affairs, to massive cathedrals ornately adorned with every decoration imaginable. Rites: Thilgrim’s priests celebrate the coming of Winter. They are rarely called upon to perform rites save warding fields against an early, or late, frost and dismissing blizzards which rage across the countryside. Herald and Allies Thilgrim’s herald is an anarchic feral gelugon (yes I know those templates normally cannot be applied to a gelugon) barbarian. His planar allies are ice paraelementals (of appropriate size), and nabassu (mature and immature both). Category:Draconic pantheon Category:Lesser deities